Network gaming system

ABSTRACT

The present invention is a method and apparatus for collecting information about network (internet) users for determining advertising to be presented to the users. In one embodiment, user profiles are determined, and advertising is selectively provided by comparing user personal information in such profiles with a desired demographic profile. User responses to advertising are used for evaluating advertising effectiveness. The invention is useful for test marketing of products, advertisements, and reduces advertising costs.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/994,054 filed Nov. 18, 2004, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/753,513 filed Jan. 8, 2004, which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/502,285 filed Feb.11, 2000 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,496,943), which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 09/105,401 filed Jun. 26, 1998 (now U.S.Pat. No. 6,183,366), which is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 08/759,895 filed Dec. 3, 1996 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,879),which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.60/010,703 filed on Jan. 26, 1996, and U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/010,361 filed on Jan. 19, 1996.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is related to a method and apparatus forautomating the playing games such as blackjack so that they can beplayed continuously and asynchronously by a potentially large pluralityof players substantially, and wherein information related to goods andservices for sale can be exchanged between players and sponsors ofadvertisements presented during the playing of a game.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The cost effective automation of playing certain games, like blackjack,has been difficult due to the fact that these games typically require adealer and only a relatively small number of players may play the gamewith a single dealer. However, with the popularity of local andwide-area data communication networks, it is desirable to have anautomated gaming system for games such as blackjack wherein largenumbers of players may cost-effectively and efficiently play such games.

Furthermore, it has been difficult to cost-effectively provide a networkgaming system on such networks as the Internet in that gamingrestrictions prohibit wagering and ante fees in most contexts exceptsuch situations as local area networks within a casino. However, sincemany players have an interest in playing casino-type games, it wouldalso be desirable to have a way to benefit from interests in such games.Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a system that utilized agaming context as a vehicle for delivering product and/or serviceinformation to users of a network such as the Internet. In particular,it would be desirable to have a data processing system that provided alarge number of players with the ability to substantially asynchronouslyplay casino-style games on the Internet for prizes at a reduced risk orat substantially no risk, wherein the data processing system coordinatedthe presentation of products and/or services from sponsors of the gamesso that there is a coordinated, interactive exchange of informationbetween players and sponsors regarding advertisements, samples, prizesand questionnaires related to sponsor products and/or services.

Accordingly, since the present invention, as described in the sectionshereinbelow, addresses the above-discussed problems within the contextof playing blackjack, an overview of this particular game is provided sothat the novelty and various related aspects of the present inventionmay be more fully appreciated.

Description of Blackjack:

The card game of blackjack is a game of chance played between adesignated player known as a “dealer” and one or more other players.Basically, each player plays against the dealer in the sense that eachplayer attempts to achieve a collection or hand of cards having a totalscore for the hand closer to the value 21 than the score of the hand ofthe dealer. However, if a player's card hand goes over 21, the playermay lose any wagers bet on the hand regardless of the value of the cardhand of the dealer.

In further detail, blackjack is typically played with one or morestandard playing card decks wherein each card has a value. Inparticular, each of the face cards has the value of 10, and non-facecard has a value identical to the numerical value as indicated on thecard, except for aces. That is, for aces a value may be assigned ofeither 1 or 11, depending on which value a player deems most beneficialto his/her hand.

In one conventional method for playing blackjack, at the commencement ofa blackjack hand, each player initially is provided with two cards andthe dealer also receives two cards. Typically, one of the dealer's cardsis dealt with the value of the card showing whereas the other card isdealt with the value of the card hidden. However, variations on when thedealer receives his/her cards may depend on the blackjack gaming ruleswhere blackjack is being played but, in any case, one of the dealer'scards must be face-up before the players exercise various wageringoptions beyond an initial ante.

After a player has reviewed his/her cards, the player may request one ormore additional cards in an attempt to get: (a) a value for a card handthat will be greater than the hand the dealer will have, and (b) a valuefor the card hand that is less than or equal to 21. Further, a playermay under certain circumstances, as will be described below,simultaneously play more than one hand of cards against the dealer'scards. However, in requesting such additional cards, a player runs therisk of “busting” each hand played wherein the player loses his/herwager(s) on a card hand by adding cards to the hand until a valueexceeding 21 occurs. Further note that such busting of a hand occursregardless of whether or not the dealer has a card hand value of lessthan or equal to 21.

Note that after each player has ceased to request further cards (i.e.,each player “stands” on his cards), the dealer either takes one or morefurther cards (i.e., “hits”) according to predetermined blackjack rulesas established, for example, by the gaming establishment where theblackjack game is being conducted. In general, the dealer must takeadditional cards if his/her current card count total is less than 17 andthe dealer must decline further cards if the dealer's hand has a valueof 17 or more. However, there are various rules regarding whether adealer may stand or hit when the card count total is a “soft 17.” Thatis, one of the dealer's cards is an ace (and therefore may have a valueof 1 or 11) and one of the values for the dealer's hand is 17. Forexample, the dealer may be required to take a hit on a soft 17.

Since a hit(s) taken by the dealer is performed after all players haveexercised their wagering options, the final numerical value of thedealer's hand is then compared to the final numerical value of each ofthe player's hand(s) to determine the winning and losing wagers. Notethat if the dealer's hand exceeds the value of 21, then any player thathas not busted wins the wagers for their hand(s) regardless of thehand's total value. Alternatively, if the dealer's card hand is less orequal to 21, then it is compared with each of the player's card hand(s)and in each comparison the card hand with the closest total value to 21without exceeding 21 wins. Of course, ties are possible. In such cases(called a “push”), the player's wager(s) on his/her card hand arereturned.

It is typical in blackjack to have at least three additional playeroptions depending on the circumstances of play. A first such option isknown as “doubling down” wherein if the player's first two cards have avalue within a predetermined range (e.g., 10 or 11), then the player maydouble his or her wager and once dealt a single additional card, thetotal of the three card hand becomes the value for the player's hand.Alternatively, another option is that of “splitting pairs” wherein ifthe player's first two cards are identical with the exception of suit(i.e., a pair), then the pair may be split so that two card hands arecreated with one card of the pair in each hand. Thus, the player mustwager on each of the hands at least the initial wagering or ante amount.Subsequently, a second card and any subsequent successive cards aredealt to each of the separate hands as the player requests and theresults of both hands are compared to the dealer's hand, assumingneither the dealer nor either of the player's two hands busts.

In a third option, played immediately after each player has been dealttheir first two cards and the dealer has been dealt at least a firstcard, a player may request “insurance” under the circumstances where thedealer's single face-up card is an ace. In this circumstance, the playeris betting that the dealer has blackjack (i.e., a card value total of21). If the dealer does not have blackjack, then the insurance bet isforfeited and the player plays his/her blackjack hand as if theinsurance bet were never made. Note that the player can typically wageran insurance bet of one-half of the amount of his/her initial blackjackwager or ante and if the dealer has blackjack, then the dealer (or thegaming establishment) pays the player double or triple his/her insurancebet.

Further note that options for splitting pairs and doubling down mayinteract with one another according to certain pre-established gamingestablishment rules wherein, for example, a player may double down onone or more of his/her split hands.

Additionally, there are blackjack tournaments haying tournament entrantsthat compete against each other for tournament prizes. In suchtournaments each entrant has a fixed initial number of points that canbe wagered in a pre-established number of tournament blackjack games tobe played. Accordingly, the player having the highest number of pointsat the end of the tournament wins the tournament. Note that in suchtournaments, there may be specific guidelines established at thebeginning of the tournament for varying the blackjack gaming rulesbetween tournament games. For example, rules may vary on when a playermay split pairs repeatedly during the same blackjack game. Also, doubledown rules may vary so that, for example, after a splitting of pairs, aplayer may be allowed to double down on any two cards or, alternatively,an additional wager of less than the initial wager may be acceptablewhen a player requests to double down.

However, in all known variations of blackjack, players are only allowedto enter a blackjack game at the completion of a previous game and,further, there is a relatively small number of players that can playblackjack at a dealer's station simultaneously. Accordingly, it isdesirable to provide a system for playing blackjack wherein potentiallya very larger number of players can play blackjack simultaneously from asingle dealer station and wherein players can commence playing blackjackat their own discretion without waiting for a previous blackjack game tocomplete.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a computerized interactive advertising system(i.e., method and apparatus) for exchanging information regarding goodsand/or services between a first population of users (hereinafter alsoknown as “players” or “users”) and a second population of users(hereinafter also known as “sponsors” or “advertisers”). In particular,the sponsors or advertisers may present information related to goodsand/or services to the players using the present invention and theplayers may view this information while, for example, interacting withthe present invention for playing a game such as blackjack, craps,roulette, poker, pai gow or the like. Moreover, a player may alsointeract with the present invention so that the player has thecapability for responding to sponsor or advertiser presentedquestionnaires, as well as for purchasing or viewing sponsor goodsand/or services. Thus, the present invention provides an informationexchange service within a gaming context for enticing players to viewand/or interact with sponsor presentations such as interactiveadvertisements.

It is also an aspect of the present invention that each player or useris presented with advertisements for products and/or services, whereinit is believed the player will be receptive to the advertisement. Thatis, the present invention selectively presents advertisements to eachplayer, according to stored characteristics and preferences of theplayer that the present invention has determined from, for example,player supplied personal information, player responses to questions,and/or analysis of player interactions such as player requests foradditional information related an advertisement. Thus, such a selectivepresentation of advertisements allows a sponsor or advertiser to provideinformation related to relatively extensive or expensive promotionals(e.g., demonstrations, samples, discounts, trial subscriptions, prizes,bonuses) to players most likely to subsequently purchase the advertisedproduct or service. Consequently, such selectivity can greatly increasethe cost effectiveness of advertising, wherein the term, advertising (oradvertising presentation), as used herein is understood to include notonly product or service presentations that are merely informational, butalso more interactive advertising presentations such as promotionalswherein discounts, free samples or a trial usage may be offered.

Moreover, it is an aspect of the present invention that each player mayinteract with and play a game at a time and pace (i.e., tempo)substantially of the player's choosing. In particular, the player is notbound by a required order or sequence of play involving other players,even though the player may be in competition with other players. Infact, a player may cease play for an extended time while in the midst ofa game and subsequently continue the game at the point where the playerceased to play. Thus, if the present invention is easily accessible,then players may interact with the present invention at their leisure.

Accordingly, in a related aspect of the present invention, it isintended that players (more generally, users) are able to interact withthe present invention remotely, as for example, via the Internet and/oran interactive cable television network. Thus, using an Internetembodiment as an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a gamingweb site may be provided wherein players may access the interactivegaming capabilities of the present invention and substantiallysimultaneously also be presented with sponsor or advertiser providedinformation related to goods and/or services of the sponsor oradvertiser (those two terms being used substantially interchangeably todenote e.g., those who provide advertising to users and/or subsidizegame playing, product promotionals or network access). Moreover, thesponsor provided information may include, for example, hypertext links(also denoted hyperlinks) that allow players to activate, for example,network transfers for obtaining additional information regarding asponsor's goods and/or services regardless of the status of any game inwhich a player may be currently involved at the gaming web site.

It is a further aspect in one embodiment of the present invention that aplayer is able to commence play of a game at substantially any time theplayer accesses the present invention. That is, it is not necessary forany previous game being played by other players to be completed for theplayer to commence play. In other words, games provided by the presentinvention may be continuously and asynchronously commenced or entered byplayers.

It is a further aspect of the present invention to require each playerto use a distinct identification provided when the player “registers”with the present invention before playing any games so that a networksite for the invention may be able to identify each player. Accordingly,it is an aspect of the present invention during registration, that eachplayer provides personal information about him/herself both for gamingidentification and for use as selection criteria by sponsors oradvertisers for presenting particular presentations. For example, in thecase of an Internet embodiment of the present invention, suchregistering can be performed via the Internet prior to play of any gamesat a gaming/advertising web site. Thus, players may be required toprovide the present invention with information about themselves such asname, address, E-mail address, age, sex, and/or other playercharacteristics deemed pertinent to one or more sponsors or advertisers.Accordingly, the present invention provides a sponsor or advertiser withthe capability to target its presentations substantially only to playersor users having selected characteristics as, for example, determinedfrom player information provided when registering with a network sitefor the present invention.

It is a further aspect of the present invention to have players competeagainst one another for prizes in one or more gaming tournaments. Usingthe Internet embodiment of the present invention as illustrative, agaming/advertising web site for the present invention may partition thepopulation of players into competitive groups wherein each groupincludes the players for a distinct tournament. Moreover, the presentinvention may determine a competitive group according to criteria suchas: (a) the game(s) to be played in the tournament; (b) a skill levelfor the players (e.g., as determined by play in a previoustournament(s)); (c) particular player characteristics such as age, areaof residence, home ownership, etc.; (d) particular player lifestyletraits such as traits exhibited by exercise enthusiasts or cruise shipenthusiasts; and (e) particular player preferences such as preferencesrelated to jewelry, personal care products or particular sports.

It is a further aspect of the present invention to allow players to playgames offered by the present invention without incurring financial riskor charges beyond those that are typical for the network being used inaccessing the present invention.

It is a particular aspect of the present invention to provide blackjackand other casino-style games such as craps, roulette, poker, pai gow, orvariations thereof, wherein such games may be played by a plurality ofplayers continuously and asynchronously, and wherein each game is likelyto be unique from all other games being played concurrently.Furthermore, in a related aspect of the present invention, such gamesmay be automated so as to not require a manual dealer. Also, the presentinvention may be played, in one embodiment, in a gaming establishment(e.g., casino) using low cost gaming stations at which players may playsuch games entirely electronically. Alternatively, in anotherembodiment, the present invention may be used to play such casino stylegames as blackjack on the Internet. In this later embodiment, ablackjack game controller for the present invention communicates withblackjack players at Internet client nodes via a web site from which theblackjack game controller is accessed. Thus, blackjack players may playblackjack in the privacy of their own homes and at their leisure sincethe present invention does not require that a particular tempo of ablackjack game be maintained.

Additionally, the present invention utilizes novel varieties in suchgames, as blackjack, that make the games more enjoyable for users. Forexample, using variations of blackjack as illustrative, in one novelembodiment wherein the dealer functions are automated by a dealermodule, this module can play blackjack with a plurality of playersconcurrently such that each player appears to be playing exclusivelywith the dealer module (e.g., “head-to-head”). Moreover, in oneblackjack embodiment, each blackjack game is played asynchronously fromother concurrent blackjack games with the dealer module. Furthermore,the dealer module may play a different dealer card hand with eachplayer. In particular, the initial one (or two) cards (or cardrepresentations) dealt to the dealer for each game are unlikely to bethe same for any two blackjack games being player with the dealermodule; i.e., the probability of any two concurrently played blackjackgames being identical is substantially equal to chance. Accordingly,this variation is particularly worthwhile when players are playingremotely through a network such as the Internet. Alternatively, in adifferent blackjack variation, the dealer module and each playerconcurrently playing blackjack with the dealer module may be providedwith cards (or card representations) from the beginning of an identicalsequence of card representations. Thus, each concurrently playing playerreceives an identical initial card hand and the dealer is also dealt anidentical initial card hand. Subsequently, the card hands within eachconcurrent game will vary only if players request further cardsdifferently. Accordingly, this variation of blackjack is particularlyuseful in tournament blackjack played within the confines of a casino,wherein the play of each player in the tournament is synchronized tostart and stop within a predetermined interval. Note that this variationof blackjack is enjoyed by tournament players in that the tournamentplayers may consider it a better or fairer way for demonstratingblackjack playing skill.

Other features and benefits of the present invention will becomeapparent from the detailed description with the accompanying figurescontained hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the present inventionwherein this embodiment may be used within a blackjack gamingestablishment such as a casino;

FIG. 2 provides a representation of the gaming stations 18 of FIG. 1wherein these gaming stations are used in gaming establishments forplaying blackjack;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention wherein the present invention is used to play blackjack on theInternet;

FIGS. 4A-4E represent a flowchart for the processing performed by theblackjack game controller 14 when processing blackjack requests fromplayers in either of the embodiments of FIG. 1 or FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 provides a simple example of the operation of the presentinvention for playing a novel variation of blackjack wherein fourblackjack games are shown being played asynchronously with the blackjackgame controller;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are a block diagram of an Internet embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating how a user navigates through web pagesof the World Wide Web for accessing the game/advertisement web site 308(FIG. 6) functionality; and

FIGS. 8A and 8B are an alternative embodiment of the game/advertisementweb site 308. In particular, FIGS. 8A and 8B is a block diagram of analternative embodiment of the present invention wherein an advertisementsending daemon (i.e., TCP/IP daemon ad sender on the host computer 308)and an advertisement receiving daemon 806 (on the client end usermachine 318) communicate for periodically displaying advertisements andother announcements to a user on the end user machine 318.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In FIG. 1, a block diagram is presented of a first embodiment of anelectronic system 10 for the present invention for playing blackjack,wherein data flows are represented by solid arrows and control flows arerepresented by dashed arrows. In particular, the embodiment of FIG. 1presents an architecture for the present invention for use on, forexample, a local network within a casino, wherein low cost gamingstations may be utilized. Accordingly, the blackjack gaming system 10includes a blackjack game controller 14 electronically connected to oneor more potentially remote gaming stations 18 so that for each gamingstation a player may play blackjack. In the blackjack gaming system 10,the blackjack game controller 14 functions substantially as a dealerwould in a manually operated blackjack game and each gaming station 18provides a blackjack player with an electronic representation of ablackjack game wherein it may appear that the player (i.e., user) at thegaming station 18 is the only player playing against the dealer (i.e.,“head-to-head” against the blackjack game controller 14). Accordingly,each gaming station 18, as will be discussed with reference to FIG. 2below, includes a display for displaying both the dealer's cards and theplayer's cards. Each gaming station 18 also includes player interactioncapabilities for requesting additional cards, activating variousblackjack player options at appropriate times, and potentiallyincreasing various wagers at predetermined phases of a blackjack game.Further note that each gaming station 18, when in operation, may requesta security code be provided by a player for identifying himself/herselfor, alternatively, the gaming station may request the player to insertan electronic card (not shown) into the gaming station 18 so thatinformation electronically encoded upon the card is read at the gamingstation and transferred to the blackjack controller 14.

Referring now to the internal structure of the blackjack game controller14, a gaming station interface 22 is provided for interfacing with eachof the gaming stations 18. In particular, the gaming station interface22 buffers data signals between the other components included within theblackjack game controller 14 and the gaming stations 18. For example,the gaming station interface 22 may have speed matching buffers in orderto adjust for differences in speed between the blackjack game controller14 and the gaming stations 18. A blackjack driver 26 exchanges data withthe gaming station interface 22. The blackjack driver 26 substantiallycoordinates the operation of the blackjack game controller 14. Inparticular, the following capabilities are substantially provided by theblackjack driver 26:

-   (1.1) identifies each player requesting to play blackjack at one of    the gaming stations 18;-   (1.2) creates internal data structures for communication with other    modules of the blackjack game controller 14 regarding each blackjack    game being played; in particular, blackjack gaming data objects or    records are (re)instantiated with each player request, such data    objects providing sufficient information for the blackjack game    controller 14 to properly respond to each received player request;-   (1.3) determines the output of the blackjack game controller 14 to    each of the active gaming stations 18;-   (1.4) distributes blackjack gaming data between other modules of the    blackjack game controller 14; and-   (1.5) provides card representations to gaming stations 18.

In performing the above tasks, the blackjack driver 26 communicates witha blackjack player registration and playing status database 28. Thedatabase system 28 maintains in persistent storage information regardingeach blackjack player. In particular, the database system 28 maintains:

-   (2.1) information identifying each player; e.g., a unique player    identification code;-   (2.2) information regarding, for example, each blackjack player's    financial status; in particular, a credit limit and a current amount    of funds (either to be paid or received from the player);-   (2.3) for each person registered to play blackjack, information    regarding the status or context of any game the player is presently    playing; that is, sufficient information is stored so that the    blackjack game controller 14 can retrieve this information and    continue a blackjack game in response to receiving a player's    request;-   (2.4) for each person registered to play blackjack, information    regarding any blackjack tournament that the player is playing; in    particular, since such a tournament typically requires a tournament    player to complete a specified number of blackjack games in a    predetermined amount of time and/or to complete a specified number    of blackjack games out of a total number of blackjack games, the    following types of information maybe stored: (a) information    relating to the number of blackjack games completed by the    player; (b) information related to the time and/or the number of    games remaining in the tournament; and (c) information related to    the amount of funds or points in the player's account for the    tournament.

The blackjack driver 26 communicates with a wager accounting module 30wherein the wager accounting module provides the following capabilities:

-   (3.1) determines various wagering limit parameters for the next one    or more blackjack games to be played (e.g., the wagering limit per    game and the total wagering limit per player); and-   (3.2) performs wagering accounting for each player's wins and    losses.    Thus, the wager accounting module 30 is instrumental in initializing    a new blackjack game in that this module receives and maintains    financial information related to each currently active player at a    gaming station 18. Thus, the wager accounting module 30 has a    communication data channel with the blackjack player registration    and playing status database 28 so that the wager accounting module    30 may retrieve information for determining whether the player has,    for example, sufficient financial resources to cover potential    wagering losses. Of course, to provide waging evaluation information    to other controller 14 modules, the wager accounting module 30    receives identifying information from each such module requesting an    evaluation.

The blackjack driver 26 also communicates with a blackjack playerevaluator 34. The blackjack player evaluator 34 receives, from eachplayer (via instantiations of blackjack gaming data objects from theblackjack driver 26), all blackjack player requests except the data fromeach player indicating an amount to be wagered. Thus, the blackjackplayer evaluator 34:

-   (4.1) determines each player's options during blackjack games; and-   (4.2) responds to player requests for hits or to, for example, split    pairs.    Thus, the blackjack player evaluator 34 enforces the gaming    establishment rules related to player options during a blackjack    game. Note, however, that in responding to certain player requests,    the blackjack player evaluator 34 communicates with the wager    accounting module 30 to confirm that a proper wager accompanies the    requested option and that the wager is acceptable to the wager    accounting module 30.

The blackjack player evaluator 34 is supplied with data corresponding toblackjack card representations from a card generator module 38. The cardgenerator module 38 generates, for example, an ordered collection orsequence of substantially random card representations and each such cardrepresentation is provided to the blackjack player evaluator 34, whereinthe blackjack player evaluator responds to each player's valid hitrequest by outputting the most recent card representation received fromthe card generator module 38. That is, each player at a gaming station18 receives a card representation according to when the player's requestis received by the blackjack player evaluator 34.

Further, note that the card generator module 38 also supplies the samecard representations as supplied to the blackjack player evaluator 34 toa house blackjack playing module 42, wherein this latter module playsthe dealer's hand in each blackjack game. Thus, the house blackjackplaying module 42 enforces the blackjack gaming rules on behalf of thegaming establishment. In particular, this module determines when and howinsurance bets can be made related to the dealer's cards. Note, as withthe blackjack player evaluator 34, the house blackjack playing module 42outputs, when required to provide the dealer's hand with another cardrepresentation at a gaming station 18, the most recent cardrepresentation received from the card generator module 38. Further notethat the house blackjack playing module 42 provides control informationto the blackjack driver 26, particularly regarding activation of theblackjack insurance option. This information, in turn, is conveyed tothe blackjack player evaluator 34 so that this latter evaluator mayactivate the insurance option for each player at an active gamingstation 18.

A blackjack hand evaluator 46 is also in communication with theblackjack driver 26. The blackjack hand evaluator 46 evaluates eachplayer's hand(s) in comparison to the dealer's blackjack hand fordetermining the win/loss/tie for each player's hand. Thus, the dealer'shand and the one or more hands played by each player at a gaming station18 is supplied to the blackjack hand evaluator 46. Subsequently, thisevaluator outputs win/loss/tie results to the gaming stations 18 via theblackjack driver 26 and the gaming station interface 22. Further, theblackjack hand evaluator 46 also outputs win/loss/tie results along withthe identity of the player playing each hand to the wager accountingmodule 30 so that wager credits and debits for each player's account maybe updated according to the last or most recent blackjack game results.

In FIG. 2, an embodiment of a gaming station 18 is illustrated. Thegaming station 18 includes a player input area 204 wherein a player maypress touch-sensitive portions of a thin film laminated with blackjackplayer operations and requests. Immediately above the player input areais a player output display area 208 for displaying blackjack gaminginformation related to the player. Optionally, each gaming station 18may include a player identification card reader 216 so that a blackjackplayer may identify him/herself at a gaming station 18 by swiping amagnetic identification portion of a player identification card (notshown) through the card slot 220 thereby allowing the card reader 216 totransmit the player's encoded identification upon his/her card to theblackjack game controller 14. However, it should be noted that otherconfigurations of the gaming station 18 are also contemplated by thepresent invention. In particular, gaming station 18 may not have a cardreader 216. Instead, a blackjack player may be required to registereither manually or automatically at a site remote from the gamingstation 18, or, alternatively personal identification numbers may beprovided to players for identifying themselves via the player input area204 wherein, for example, a numeric digit provided in the lower bottomportion of some of the touch-sensitive areas may be used by the playerto input a personal identification number. Further, the arrangement ofthe touch-sensitive portions of the player input area 204 and the formatof the display area 208 (both being discussed in detail below) may haveother arrangements and still be within the scope of the presentinvention.

Describing in detail now the touch-sensitive portions of the playerinput area 204, an activate/enter next game button 220 is provided. Thisbutton is used to initially activate the gaming station 18 so that a“request to play” signal is transmitted to the blackjack driver 26. Thatis, assuming a player activates this button at a gaming station 18, theblackjack driver 26 responds by requesting that the player input his/heridentification via, for example, placing an identification card in thecard reader 216 and/or a personal identification number via the playerinput area 204. Additionally, note that the button 220 may be pressed atthe end of a blackjack game for indicating that the player wishes toplay another blackjack game. Note that in one embodiment of the presentinvention when consecutive games are played by a player, the player needonly press the button 220 to commence a new game. That is, the player'sidentification need not be entered for each consecutive game played(assuming the button 220 is activated within a predetermined time afterthe last game has terminated).

The player input area 204 also includes a quit button 224 that a playermay press to explicitly indicate the player's desire to terminate anyfurther gaming at the gaming station 18.

Additionally, buttons 228 through 248 provide the player with thecapabilities to request the following blackjack gaming requests:

-   (5.1) The “HIT” button 228 allows the player to request another card    to be dealt to him/her.-   (5.2) The “STND” button 232 allows the player to stand on a current    blackjack hand.-   (5.3) The “DBL” button 236 allows the player to double down under    appropriate circumstances as determined by the blackjack player    evaluator 34.-   (5.4) The “SPLIT” button 240 allows the player to split the player's    first two cards into two separate blackjack hands when these first    two cards are identical.-   (5.5) The “INS” button 244 allows the player to request insurance    under the circumstances where the dealer's single face-up card is an    ace.-   (5.6) The “BET” button 248 allows the player to request that a bet    or wager be entered during a blackjack game.

Note that subsequent to requesting a bet via the “BET” button 248, thebuttons 252 through 264 are activated so that the player may inputvarious betting amounts. In particular, buttons 252 through 264 providethe player with the option to bet $5.00 (button 252), $25.00 (button256), $100.00 (button 260) and $500.00 (button 264). Moreover, asequence of the buttons 252 through 264 may be pressed for obtaining abet not provided by a single button. For example, to bet $130.00, theplayer presses consecutively each of the buttons 252, 256 and 260 (inany order) exactly once.

The player input area 204 also includes various confirm and cancelbuttons 268 through 276. The accept button 268 allows the user to accepta last input. For example, it is an aspect in the present embodiment ofthe invention that after each user input, the input is accepted eitherby the player explicitly pressing the accept button 268 or by allowing apredetermined amount of time to expire after the last player input. The“CANCEL BET” button 272 allows the user to cancel an immediatelypreceding bet that was input. However, note that if a time limit isexceeded for placing a bet due to, for example, the player pressing the“CANCEL” button 272, then any minimum bet required will be automaticallywagered on the player's behalf by the wager accounting module 30.Further, the “CANCEL LAST” button 276 may be used by the player tocancel the immediately preceding wager of one of the dollar amountbuttons 252 through 264. Thus, if a player intended to bet $125.00 bypressing first the button 260 followed by the button 256 but insteadpressed the button sequence 260 and 264, then the player may press thebutton 276 for cancelling the $500.00 bet associated with button 264 andsubsequently the player presses the button 256 to obtain the desired betof $125.00. Note further that pressing the “CANCEL LAST” button twice insuccession also cancels the entire bet.

A “SPEED OF PLAY” button 280 may be optionally provided on the playerinput area 204. This button allows the player to specify to theblackjack driver 26, for example, the predetermined amount of time aftera player input to wait before each subsequent input is automaticallyaccepted. In one embodiment of the present invention, the “SPEED OFPLAY” button 280 includes active areas at each end of the button,wherein if the user presses the “slower” end of the button 280, then thepredetermined time(s) for automatically accepting a player input islengthened. Alternatively, if the player presses the “faster” end of thebutton 280, then the predetermined default acceptance time(s) becomesshorter. However, it is important to note that the tempo of theblackjack game is, using the present invention, no longer as importantas in typical blackjack gaming situations. That is, since each blackjackplayer using the present invention is not playing in sequence with otherplayers, there is less concern about speedily playing so as not to delayother players.

Lastly, the player input area 204 includes a “HELP” button 284 forallowing the player to request assistance from, for example, thepersonnel of the gaming establishment providing the gaming station 18.

Referring now to display area 208, the screen display provided here isbut one of a number of contemplated screen layouts for the presentinvention. In particular, the screen layout illustrated in display area208 is a representative layout for use in playing tournament blackjack.Thus, when other modes of blackjack are played other than tournamentblackjack, then it is within the scope of the present invention tomodify the fields represented in the display area 208 according to theplayer needs for the type of blackjack being played. Further, it isimportant to note that in one embodiment, the display 208 is in color sothat, for example, diamonds and hearts are in red and spades and clubsare in black, and various fields of the display area 208 may behighlighted for focusing a player's attention on the portion of thedisplay providing information most relevant to the player's currentlypermissible options.

Describing now the fields currently presented in display 208, at the topof the display is the house hand area 288: (a) for providing arepresentation of the cards that have been dealt to the house; (b) forproviding a status of the house hand (i.e. one of “STND” for standing,“BUSTED”, when the value of the house hand exceeds 21, and “CONTINUING”when the house may take additional hits. That is, this field provides anannotation “house hand:” followed by a representation for at least onecard that has been dealt to the house; i.e., an ace of hearts. In theplayer's hand area 292 of the display area 208, there are five columnsproviding information related to each blackjack hand the player iscurrently playing in the blackjack game. The columns provide thefollowing information:

-   (6.1) The “PLAYER HAND(S)” column provides, in each row of this    column, a different blackjack hand that is being played    simultaneously by the player in the current blackjack game. Thus,    two blackjack hands are presently represented as being played    simultaneously by the player on the display area 208. That is, an    upper or first hand having a three of spades, king of hearts, and a    five of spades, and, a lower or second blackjack hand having a three    of clubs and an eight of diamonds. (Note, when a player chooses to    double down, card representations in common between two blackjack    hands may be displayed in a row between the remaining card    representations for both hands. Alternatively, card representations    in common between blackjack hands may be duplicated iii the    blackjack hands to which the common cards representations apply.)-   (6.2) A “STATUS” column for indicating the current status of each    blackjack hand the player is playing. That is, for the first or    upper hand that the player currently is playing the status is “STND”    thereby indicating that the player has elected to stand on this    hand. Alternatively, for the second or lower hand a status of “PICK    OPTION” is provided thereby indicating that it is the player's turn    to pick a blackjack playing option for this hand. Note that there    are at least three possible values for the status field of each    blackjack hand being played. That is, in addition to the two    represented in FIG. 2, a “BUSTED” status value is output for    indicating that the value of the related blackjack hand has exceeded    21.-   (6.3) The “OPTIONS” column provides, for each blackjack hand being    played, an indication of the permissible blackjack plays that the    player currently may select from for the related blackjack hand in    the same row. Thus, for the first hand illustrated in area 292,    there are no options remaining for the player to play related to    this hand. However, on the second hand, four permissible player    inputs are displayed as options to the player. That is, the player    may stand on the related hand (STND) by pressing button 232, the    player may request a hit (HIT) by pressing button 228, the player    may double down (DBL) by pressing button 236 and the player may bet    an additional wager by pressing button 248 and subsequently putting    a bet amount using buttons 252 through 264.-   (6.4) The “LAST BET” column displays to the player his/her last bet    for each blackjack hand the player is currently playing. In    particular, for both the upper and lower hands shown in area 292,    the player's last bet was $50.00.-   (6.5) The “TOTAL BET” column displays to the player the total bet    the player has wagered on the blackjack hand to which it relates.    For example, in FIG. 2, in both the upper and lower player's    blackjack hands displayed, the player has bet a total of $200.00.

Below the player hand area 292 is the player information area 296wherein additional blackjack gaming information relating to the playeris displayed. In particular, labeled line 300 displays the most recentbet amount that the player has requested along with a tag indicating thestatus (e.g., “ACCEPT/CANCEL”) of the most recent bet. Note that thestatus may be: (a) “ACCEPTED” for explicitly or implicitly indicatingthe acceptance of a displayed wager (via the player pressing the acceptbutton 268 or by default due to a time limit expiring); (b) “CANCELLED”for explicitly indicating the cancellation of the last entered wager(via the player pressing either of the cancel buttons 272 or 276); (c)“REJECTED”, this status being displayed due to the wager accountingmodule 30 rejecting the player's most recent bet; and (d)“ACCEPT/CANCEL” for indicating that the present invention is waiting apredetermined amount of time for the player to explicitly accept orcancel the most recent bet. Thus, in the example of line 300 in FIG. 2,the player has indicated a most recent bet of $30.00 and the blackjackdriver 26 has output a status of “ACCEPT/CANCEL” as in (d) above.Further note that the blackjack hand(s) to which this most recent betapplies may be designated in any of a number of ways such as, forexample, highlighting the row(s) in the player hand area 292 of theblackjack hand(s) to which the most recent bet of line 300 applies.Alternately, an indicator such as arrows 302 may be used as in FIG. 2 toindicate to the player that the most recent bet is to be applied to boththe upper and lower blackjack hand(s).

Additionally, note that line 304 displays the annotation “INSURANCEBET:” together with any insurance amount that has been bet by theplayer. Accordingly, the dollar amount on line 304 and the notation atthe right end of the line pertain, respectively, to the amount that hasbeen bet as insurance, and the status of this bet (i.e., one of“ACCEPTED”, “CANCELLED”, “REJECTED” or “ACCEPT/CANCEL” as in line 300).

In line 312 of the player information area 296, the total amount offunds available by the player for betting is displayed. For example,line 312 of FIG. 2 indicates that the player has a total amount forbetting of $1,000.00. Note that the wager accounting module 30 maintainsthis total amount available for betting and updates it after eachblackjack game.

The lower three lines 320, 324 and 328 of the player information area296 provide blackjack player information that is particularly usefulwhen playing in a blackjack tournament. Thus, the information in thesethree lines may not be displayed when the present invention is used byplayers not in a tournament. In line 320, two fields are provided fordisplaying playing time information. The leftmost field, annotated bythe label “ELAPSED PLAYING TIME:”, displays the total amount of time theplayer has played blackjack (which in this case is 45 minutes).Alternatively, the rightmost field, annotated by the label “REMAININGPLAYING TIME:”, displays the time remaining in the tournament.

In line 324 an identifier for any tournament associated with the presentblackjack game is displayed.

In line 328, up to two additional fields are provided that are useful intournament blackjack. The leftmost field having an annotation of “GAMESPLAYED:” displays to the player the number of blackjack games he/she hascompleted within a tournament. Note that in some blackjack tournamentseach player is required to complete a certain predetermined number ofgames within a predetermined allotted time period. For example, ablackjack tournament may require each player to play 50 games within apredetermined interval (such as four days). Relatedly, but optionally,in blackjack gaming contexts where the total number of blackjack gamesin the tournament is meaningful, the rightmost field of line 328, havingthe annotation “GAME NUMBER:”, displays to the player the total numberof tournament games that have been completed thus far in the tournament.Accordingly, using at least the leftmost annotated field in line 328 and“REMAINING PLAYING TIME:” annotated field of line 320, the player isable to determine the number of remaining games in the tournament thathe/she must play.

Further note that other blackjack game values are contemplated by thepresent invention. For example, a field providing the number of gamesremaining that a player must play in the tournament may be added (orsubstituted for) in addition to the current values in the playerinformation area 296.

In a next display 208 lower area, denoted the rules area 336, blackjackhouse rules are displayed. In particular, the house rules displayed inarea 336 allow variations upon the typical blackjack rules that a playeris likely to assume if not presented with information to the contrary.Note that by providing these additional rules on the display of gamingstations 18, successive blackjack games may be provided with differenthouse blackjack rules thereby creating an increased interest in eachgame by the players and requiring additional blackjack playing skillsfrom the players. Note that three house rules are provided in thepresent display area 336. That is, (a) insurance for the presentblackjack game pays 3 to 1 odds (instead of the typical 2 to 1 odds);(b) the player may double down after splitting only once; and (c) theminimum bet is $25.00 for the current game.

Lastly, the display 208 includes a player identification area 342 foridentifying the player currently playing blackjack at the gaming station18. The present player area 342, includes a field having the currentplayer's name (e.g., I. R. SMITH). However, other fields identifying theplayer are also contemplated by the present invention including, forexample, a player identification number such as the number that may beencoded upon a player identification card used in conjunction with thecard reader 216 for identifying the player.

FIG. 3 presents a second embodiment of the blackjack gaming system ofthe present invention. In this embodiment, the blackjack game controller14 is substantially the same as described hereinabove. However, thiscontroller 14 is now accessible through an Internet web site 308 so thatblackjack players at Internet client nodes 318 can play blackjack on theblackjack game controller 14 via the Internet 324 (or more particularly,via the World Wide Web).

Accordingly, describing the web site 308 in more detail, it includes anInternet interface 332 for receiving and supplying communicationsbetween the Internet 324 and the remainder of the web site 308. TheInternet interface 332, in turn, communicates with World Wide Web server340: (a) for validating and/or initiating registration of web site users(e.g., blackjack players) at web site 308; and (b) for interpretingInternet requests for routing and/or activating web site 308 modulesthat can fulfill such requests. Thus, the World Wide Web server 340 mayaccess the database system 28 for determining the registration identityof, for example, a blackjack player. Additionally, upon receiving userregistration confirmation regarding an Internet (e.g., World Wide Web)request, the World Wide Web server 340 activates instantiations ofmodules known as common gateway interface (CGI) scripts, each CGI script348 instantiation (or, for simplicity, each such instantiation alsobeing referred to as a CGI script 348) being: (a) for interpreting andprocessing Internet requests according to the semantics of a web site308 application associated with the CGI script; and (b) for constructingInternet responses from output from the associated application. Thus,there are one or more common gateway interface modules provided whereineach CGI script 348 (instantiation) invokes the blackjack gamecontroller 14 to process a single Internet blackjack request from anInternet client node 318 where a player is playing blackjack, andsubsequently the CGI script 348 constructs an appropriate Internetresponse from the output received from the blackjack game controller 14.

Since the embodiment of the blackjack game controller 14 of FIG. 3 issubstantially identical to that of FIG. 1, a description of its internalstructure is not repeated here. However, it is worthwhile to note thatthe embodiment of FIG. 3 is particularly appropriate when the blackjackgame controller 14 executes on a different or remote processor from thatof, for instance, the processor performing the CGI script(s) 348.Further, note that if the blackjack game controller 14 executes on thesame processor as the other web site 308 modules of FIG. 3, then thecommunication interface 22 may be unnecessary, and additionally, much ofthe functionality of the other components of the blackjack gamecontroller 14 may be incorporated into one or more CGI scripts 348.Thus, for example, the blackjack player evaluator 34 functionality maybe incorporated into one CGI script 348 while house blackjack playingmodule 42 functionality may be incorporated into another CGI script.

There are also noteworthy distinctions between the gaming stations 18 ofFIGS. 1 and 2 and the Internet client nodes 318 of FIG. 3 as well asdistinctions in blackjack play interactions. For example, the followingdistinctions may be provided:

-   (7.1) Due to the potentially lengthy delays that occur on the    Internet, the embodiment of FIG. 3 does not provide for automatic    acceptance of a blackjack play (e.g., acceptance of an input bet or    a default to a minimum ante) due to a time period expiring. Thus,    the speed of play is determined by the responsiveness of each player    and the responsiveness of the Internet.-   (7.2) Players may play blackjack in tournaments against one another    on the Internet wherein, for each tournament entered by a player,    he/she receives, without cost, a predetermined number of points to    use for playing in the tournament. Note that prizes may be awarded    to tournament winners as incentive to play in such blackjack    tournaments. Further note that the time period to complete a    tournament may be substantially more lengthy than the time periods    for typical blackjack tournament play. For example, a tournament may    extend for 90 days since players can play at their leisure.-   (7.3) The input keys of gaming station 18 of FIG. 1 may be also    presented on the display screens of Internet client nodes 318    wherein the input buttons of gaming station 18 now become active    buttons on a blackjack web page generated by the web site 308 and    presented to a player at an Internet client node 318. However, note    that at least the speed of play key 280 is not necessary, as    mentioned in reference to the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2 since the    speed of play is of diminished importance.

(7.4) There may be other types of information output to an Internetclient node 318 in addition to the information displayed in FIG. 3. Inparticular, advertising information may be provided with each web site308 response to a player regarding, for example, blackjack tournamentsponsors and prizes.

In FIGS. 4A-4E, a flowchart is presented of the high level stepsperformed by the blackjack game controller 14 when processing playerrequests in either of the embodiments of FIG. 1 or 3 for playing a novelblackjack variation wherein new eligible card representations aregenerated periodically regardless of whether they are dealt in ablackjack game or not and wherein the blackjack players may play thegame asynchronously from one another. In step 408, the blackjack gamecontroller 14 is initialized so that it may process blackjack playerrequests and output appropriate responses to each player's request.Subsequently, in step 416, the card generator module 38 commences tooutput at regular intervals (e.g., less than two seconds such as every0.5 seconds) random card representations to both the blackjack playerevaluator 34 and the house blackjack playing module 42. Thus, for aslong as the blackjack game controller 14 is properly responding toblackjack player requests, the card generator module 38 continuously andregularly outputs card representations. Concomitantly with the actionsin step 416, the remaining steps of FIGS. 4A-4E are performed. Thus, instep 424, the controller 14 waits for a (next) blackjack player input,such inputs being, for example, requests to enter a new blackjacktournament, requests to commence a new blackjack game within atournament, requests to process a blackjack game play request, a requestfor information regarding the players account, and a request for helpinformation (such as how to play blackjack).

Upon receiving a blackjack player request, in step 430 the communicationinterface 22 queues the request and subsequently transmits the requestto the blackjack driver 26. In step 436, a determination is made as towhether the players request is related to a current blackjack gameand/or current blackjack tournament. If not, then step 448 isencountered wherein an additional determination is made as to whetherthe player's request is to enter a new blackjack tournament. If so, thenin step 454 the blackjack driver 26 determines a blackjack tournamentand enters the player into the tournament. Note that in providing thisfunction, the blackjack player 26 communicates with the wager accountingmodule 30 to confirm that the player is eligible to enter a newtournament. Thus, the blackjack driver 26 supplies the wager accountingmodule 30 with at least the player's identification and a specificationof the tournament in which the player may be entered. Note that thetournament selection may be provided by the player in some embodimentsof the present invention. Alternatively, the blackjack driver 26 mayselect a tournament for the player using tournament information storedin the database system 28. Assuming that the wager accounting module 30responds with a confirmation that the player may be entered into theselected tournament, in step 458, the blackjack driver 26 creates aconfirmation record identifying the blackjack tournament in which theplayer is entered. Subsequently, in step 462 the blackjack driver 26outputs information in the confirmation record to the player at his/herInternet client node 318 (gaming station 18). Thus, in the embodiment ofFIG. 3 of the present invention, the output of step 462 (and allsubsequent such outputs to a blackjack player) are output from theblackjack driver 26 to the communication interface 22 for queuing untilthe output can be transmitted to the CGI script 348 that initiated theplayer request to which this output is a response. Subsequently, theoutput is transmitted to the World Wide Web server 340 and to theInternet interface 332 for transmitting on the Internet 324 and therebybeing routed to the Internet client node 318 where the player is playingblackjack.

Following step 462, in step 466, the blackjack driver 26 enters, intothe database system 28, information indicating the blackjack tournamentin which the player has been entered. Note that the information enteredhere into the database system 28 is subsequently accessible both by theblackjack driver 26 and the wager accounting module 30 for determiningthe tournament(s) in which the player has been entered. Following thisstep, since the player's request has been processed, the flow of controlloops back to step 424 to wait for the next player input from a playerat an Internet client node 318 or alternatively a gaming station 18.

Returning now to step 448, if the player has not requested to enter ablackjack tournament then step 470 is encountered to process anymiscellaneous blackjack player requests not related to a currentblackjack game and/or blackjack tournament. For example, a player mayrequest accounting information related to his/her blackjack gamingaccount. Assuming such requests are processed and responded to thisstep, the flow of control again returns to step 424 to wait for a nextplayer input.

Returning now to step 436, if the player request is related to a currentblackjack and/or blackjack tournament, then step 476 is encounteredwherein the blackjack driver 426 uses the player's identification (ID)provided with the request for retrieving any status information from thedatabase system 28 regarding any current blackjack game and/or blackjacktournament in which the player may be currently involved. Subsequently,in step 480, a determination is made as to whether the player request isto commence a new blackjack game in a current tournament. If so, then instep 484 the blackjack driver 26 requests confirmation from the wageraccounting module 30 that the player can commence with a new blackjackgame in the current tournament. That is, the wager accounting module 30determines whether the player has sufficient tournament credits tocontinue in the tournament. Following this, in step 488, the blackjackdriver 26 determines whether a confirmation has been received from thewager accounting module 30. If no such confirmation is provided, then instep 492, the blackjack driver 26 outputs a message to the player athis/her Internet client node 318 (gaming station 18) indicating that nofurther blackjack games in the current tournament may be played by theplayer.

Alternatively, if in step 488 the blackjack driver 26 receivesconfirmation from the wager accounting module 30, then in step 494 theblackjack driver 26 creates a blackjack game record for fulfilling theplayer's request. Note that in creating the new blackjack game datarecord, the blackjack driver 26 communicates with the wager accountingmodule 30 to both debit the player's account for any initial antecorresponding to commencing the new blackjack game and also to output tothe blackjack driver 26 data of this transaction for subsequentlyoutputting to the player. Following this step, in step 496, theblackjack driver 26 requests the blackjack player evaluator 34 toprovide an initial blackjack game configuration for the new blackjackgame. Subsequently, in step 500, the blackjack player evaluator 34responds with an initial blackjack game configuration, wherein thisconfiguration includes the initial card representation for the player'shand (as shown, for example, in area 292 of FIG. 2). Note that thisinitial card representation is the most recent card representationprovided to the blackjack player evaluator 34 by the card generatormodule 38. Thus, note that if two player requests to commence a newblackjack game were transmitted to the blackjack driver 26 in rapidsuccession, then step 500 may be performed for each of the requestsbefore the dealer module 38 outputs a new random card representation tothe blackjack player evaluator 34. Consequently, in such a case bothplayers will be presented with an identical initial card representationfor the player's hand. Subsequently, in step 504, the blackjack driver26 stores information regarding the identity and initial configurationof the new blackjack game for the player in the database system 28. Inparticular, a blackjack game identifier for the new game is stored andassociated with the identity of the blackjack player and the tournamentto which the game is associated. Following step 500, in step 504, theblackjack driver 26 stores information regarding the new blackjack gamefor the player in the database system 28. In particular, the followinginformation is stored regarding the initial configuration of the newblackjack game: the player's identity, the identity of the tournamentfor which the new game corresponds, and identifier identifying the newgame, and an initial configuration for the new blackjack game includingcard representations and any initial required bets. Further, note thatthroughout the course of each blackjack game played by a player, theblackjack driver 26 and the wager accounting module 30 updateinformation in the database system 28 as the game configuration changesdue to interactions between the player and the blackjack game controller14. Thus, for a blackjack game underway, each request from a player forcontinuing the game with a next play, need not provide the entire gameconfiguration to the blackjack game controller 14. Instead, onlysufficient information is required in the request for the blackjackdriver 26 and/or the wager accounting module 30 to retrieve informationrelated to the blackjack game configuration corresponding to theplayer's request. Following step 504, in step 508, the blackjack driver26 outputs an initial blackjack game configuration for the new game tothe player at his/her Internet client node 318 (gaming station 18).Subsequently, the flow of control once again returns to step 424 toawait a next player input to the controller 14.

Returning now to step 480, if it is determined here that the playerrequest is not to commence a new blackjack game in a current tournament,then step 520 is encountered wherein a determination is made as towhether the player request is related to a play in a currently activeblackjack game. If not, then in step 524 the blackjack game controller14 processes miscellaneous requests such as, for example, a request forspecial blackjack rules relating to a current game and/or tournament,the number of players remaining in the current tournament, the player'sranking in the current tournament, and the prizes for winners of thecurrent tournament. Subsequently, assuming such miscellaneous requestsare responded to, in step 524, the flow of control for the presentflowchart returns to 424 to await a next player input.

Alternatively, if in step 520 the player request is related to a play ina currently active blackjack game, then in step 528 a furtherdetermination is made as to whether the player request is for a new cardrepresentation. If so, then in step 532, a determination is made as towhether the card request is for the house or for the player. If the cardrequest is from the house, then in step 536 the blackjack driver 26communicates with the house blackjack playing module 42 for obtaining anew blackjack game configuration for the current blackjack game, whereinthe new game configuration includes the most recently output cardrepresentation from the card generator module 38 as the next cardrepresentation in the house hand for the blackjack game from which thecurrent player's request came. Subsequently, in step 542 the houseblackjack playing module 42 outputs blackjack game configurationinformation indicating the new house hand card representation and anyplayer response(s) that the player may exercise in responding to the newblackjack game configuration.

Upon receiving the house blackjack playing Module 42 output, in step546, the blackjack driver 26 determines whether there is a furtherplayer response in the present game by invoking one or both of theblackjack player evaluator 34 and the blackjack hand evaluator 46. Ifthere are additional possible player responses, then in step 550 theblackjack driver 26 outputs a blackjack game configuration to the playerat his/her Internet client node 318 (gaming station 18) so that theplayer may exercise one of his/her available game options. Subsequently,having processed the player's request the flow of control again loopsback to step 424 to await a next player input. Alternatively, if in step546 the blackjack driver 26 determines that there are no furtherpossible player responses, then the current blackjack game is completeand the blackjack driver 26 in step 556 activates the blackjack handevaluator 46 for evaluating the blackjack game hands so that theblackjack hand evaluator can activate the wager accounting module 30 toupdate the player's account (according to the results of the blackjackgame) in the database system 28. Following this step, in step 560 thewager accounting module 30 outputs to the blackjack driver 26 updatedaccounting information to be provided to the player. In step 564, theblackjack driver 26 outputs the results of the blackjack game and theplayers updated account information to the player. Also, note that theblackjack driver 26 updates the database system 28 regarding thecompletion of the present blackjack game as well as any further statusinformation related to the player and the tournament to which thepresent blackjack game is associated. Subsequently, having processed theplayer's request, the flow of control again loops back to step 424 toawait a next player input.

Alternatively, if in step 532 it is determined that the player's requestis for a new card representation for the player, then in step 568 theblackjack driver 26 activates the blackjack player evaluator 34 forobtaining a new blackjack game configuration for the current blackjackgame, wherein the new game configuration includes the most recentlyoutput card representation from the card generator module 38 as the nextcard representation for the player's hand(s). Subsequently, in step 572the blackjack player evaluator 34 determines the next blackjack playoptions the player may exercise for the present game and then outputsthe new blackjack configuration with these options to the blackjackdriver 26. Following this, the steps 546 and subsequent steps areperformed as described above.

Returning now to step 528, if the player request is not for a new cardrepresentation then step 576 is encountered wherein the blackjack gamecontroller 14 processes other blackjack player game requests such asrequests for additional bets, cancellations of bets, a request to standon a particular player hand, a request to split a pair of cardrepresentations, or a request for insurance. Assuming, that suchrequests as described above are processed, in step 580 the blackjackdriver 26 subsequently outputs a new blackjack game configuration to theplayer according to the processing performed in step 576. Also, notethat the blackjack driver 26 updates the database system 28 withinformation relating to the new blackjack game configuration so that itmay be retrieved upon a subsequent player request relating to thepresent game. Following this step, the flow of control for the presentflowchart loops back to step 424 to again wait for another player input.

FIG. 5 presents a simple example of the operation of the presentinvention for playing blackjack wherein four blackjack games are shownbeing played asynchronously with the blackjack game controller 14. Todescribe FIG. 5 in detail, note first that the row of numbers 604 acrossthe top of the figure represents a sequence of values of successive cardrepresentations output by the card generator module 38. That is, in afirst time interval a card representation having a value of three isoutput, in a second time interval a card representation having a valueof five is output, in a third time interval a card representation havinga value of seven is output and so on across the row. Below row 604 areblackjack game rows 606, wherein each blackjack game row 606 representsa series of events that occur in each blackjack game 610 through 626over the course of time corresponding to the series of card values 604.In particular, the numerical entries within each blackjack game row 606correspond to the values of the player and house card hands asadditional cards are added to the player and house hands of eachblackjack game. For example, referring to blackjack game row 610,assuming this blackjack game commences with the player's hand obtainingthe card representation for the leftmost card value of the sequence 604(i.e. the value three), the player's hand has a corresponding value ofthree. Subsequently, if the house blackjack playing module 42 isactivated for this game to output (i.e. deal) an initial cardrepresentation to the house during the second time interval (i.e. thecard generator module 38 has output a card representation of five), thenthe house hand initially has a value of five. Subsequently, if in thethird interval the player for blackjack game 610 provides a request foranother card, then the card representation corresponding to the value ofseven in sequence 604 is provided to the player and therefore theplayer's hand has a total value of ten. Following the incorporation ofthe seven into the player's hand, this blackjack game is delayed so thatthe next time interval corresponding to the value of two in sequence 604is not dealt to either the player or the house in blackjack game 610.Note that it is an important aspect of the present invention that cardrepresentations generated by the card generator module 38 are onlyincorporated into a particular blackjack game when a request for such acard representation is made during the time the card representation isthe most recent output from the card generator module 38. Thus, one ormore card, representations output by the card generator module 38 duringa blackjack game may not be used in the game. More precisely, it istypical (although not shown in the example of FIG. 5) that substantiallyany length or subsequence of consecutive card representations output bythe card generator module 38 may be ignored within a given blackjackgame due to time delays occurring in the game. Thus, in somecircumstances such delays could be as long as a number of days if theplayer, for example, did not request another hit during such a timeinterval.

Continuing now with the remaining plays of blackjack game 610, note thatin the fifth time interval the player requests a hit thereby obtaining acard representation having a value of nine and thus obtaining a player'shand value of nineteen. Subsequently, the house takes hits for the nexttwo consecutive card representations having values eight and tenrespectively. Thus, the house hand busted when the value of twenty-threewas obtained for the house hand.

Blackjack game rows 606 for blackjack games 614 through 626 may beinterpreted similarly to the description above for blackjack game 610.Note however that each of these games commence at a different timeinterval in that each game commences with a different cardrepresentation taken as the first hit for the player's hand. That is,the first card representation dealt in each of the blackjack games 610through 626 is different and further each of the card representationsrequested corresponding to values of the sequence 604 is different foreach blackjack game. Therefore, substantially every blackjack game, evenif played concurrently with other blackjack games, will have uniqueplayer hands and house hands. Thus, not only can a large number ofasynchronous blackjack games be played simultaneously head-to-head withthe house, but also there may be a greater degree of confidence by theblackjack players that the house is not manipulating cardrepresentations in that blackjack players may substantially determinethe timing for substantially all hits in a blackjack game (for both theplayer hand and the house hand) and thereby reduce any suspicions thatthe card representations are being manipulated. Moreover, in oneembodiment, the players may request the sequence of card representationsthat were generated during the course of a game.

Note that the present invention also may include other blackjackvariations as well. In particular, referring to step 416 (FIG. 4A)again, instead of generating card representations at regular intervals,this step may simply activate the card generator module 38 so that itgenerates a substantially random card representation on demand whenevera request for a new card representation is made (e.g., steps 536 and568).

Additionally, in another blackjack variation, particularly suited fortournament blackjack where each player can be monitored, the playersplay each play for a blackjack game synchronously as blackjack istypically played with a human dealer in casinos. However, in the presentvariation, each player is provided with the identical cardrepresentations for their initial cards. Subsequently, each player handand the house (i.e., dealer) hand varies between players only whenplayers play their blackjack hands differently. That is, for eachsynchronously played blackjack game among a plurality of players, thesame sequence of card representations is available to each player andthe house blackjack playing module 42 so that, for example, the dealtcard representations in each game between one of the players and thehouse blackjack playing module are identical for players playing thesame sequence of plays throughout the game. Accordingly, as one skilledin the art will appreciate, for each blackjack game, it may be necessaryfor the card generator module 38 to maintain a predetermined sequence(or ordered collection) of card representations throughout the game sothat layers playing differently may be dealt an appropriately sequencedcard representation. Moreover, it may also be necessary for the houseblackjack dealer playing module 42 to provide sufficient controlinformation to the card generator module 38 so that the card generatormodule can respond with the appropriate card representation from thepredetermined sequence.

Another embodiment of the present invention is presented in FIGS. 6A and6B, wherein this embodiment is enhanced for presenting sponsor oradvertiser product and/or service advertising to qualified players thatadequately match a predetermined player profile such as a demographicprofile of a particular group of players. Accordingly, in FIGS. 6A and6B, there is a game/advertisement controller 604 for providingsubstantially the same functionality as the blackjack game controller 14(FIG. 3) except that games other than blackjack may also be played (suchas poker, craps, pai gow and roulette). Additionally, thegame/advertisement controller 604 also performs functions related tomatching particular advertising with the users (i.e., players) playingthe various games provided by the game/advertisement web site 308,wherein each user communicates with the web site 308 on a correspondingInternet client node 318 (alternatively interactive cable televisionnode). That is, the present FIGS. 6A and 6B present the high levelmodules for matching players having desired user characteristicsprofiles) with advertising from sponsors or advertisers requestingplayers with such user characteristics. In particular, only the playerswith such desired profiles qualify for receiving a particularadvertisement and/or promotional (i.e., advertising) from a particularsponsor or advertiser. Accordingly, it is an aspect of the presentinvention that various criteria may be used to make such a determinationas to which players (or, more generally, users) receive whichadvertising. For example, one or more of the following attributes may beused in matching users with advertising presentations:

-   (8.1) age,-   (8.2) sex,-   (8.3) financial status,-   (8.4) location or residence,-   (8.5) education,-   (8.6) marital status,-   (8.7) amount of recreational time,-   (8.8) personal tastes and/or habits (e.g., smoker/non-smoker,    preferences for sports, movies, liquor, foods, clothes, vacations,    cars, etc.),-   (8.9) size of household,-   (8.10) number of children, and-   (8.11) categorizations of users according to network interactions    such as the type of web sites accessed, the type of advertising for    which the user seeks additional information, the risk tolerance in    playing games such as blackjack.

To provide (or, match) particular users with particular advertising,data (or user information items) on each user is maintained in the formof a user profile in the user (player) database 28 which is an enhancedversion of the blackjack player registration and playing status database28 of FIG. 3. The user profiles are populated with such user relatedinformation as in (8.1) through (8.11). This information is obtainedwhen users register at the web site 308 when users respond to explicitquestions subsequently asked of them, or by monitoring the networkactivities of users. Note that user profiles may vary in length,depending on the amount of information obtained on each user. Moreover,different types of information may be obtained for different types ofusers. For example, for users having assets of more than one milliondollars, these users may be requested to enter their favorite vacationdestination location since this may be important for certainadvertisers. However, for users whose assets are less than fortythousand dollars, no such information may be obtained since theinformation would be likely irrelevant to any advertiser. Thus, in oneembodiment of the user profiles, each user profile has a variable lengthsection for storing user information items not uniform across all users.Moreover, in such an embodiment, each user information item stored inthe variable length section may be considered as a pair, wherein thefirst component of each pair indicates or references a question, userattribute, or user classification to which the second component providesan answer or value related to the first component. Thus, for example,for a particular user, an information item may provide the pair: (4,“Madrid”), wherein “4” identifies the attribute: “favorite vacationdestination location,” and “Madrid” is the value for this attribute, asone skilled in the art will understand.

Alternatively, data related to the advertisers or sponsors may reside ina different database, the advertiser database 612. Accordingly, thisdatabase stores demographic profiles which, in one embodiment, have adata structure substantially identical to the user profile datastructure. Such demographic profiles may have a variable length sectionfor specifying requested values for user information items that may beprovided in (potentially only a relatively small number of) userprofiles. In some embodiments, a demographic profile includes areference to the advertiser's or sponsor's identity, a reference to theadvertising to be presented and a variable length section of demographicitem pairs, wherein the first component of each pair has the sameinterpretation as the first component of a user information item pairand the second component of the pair specifies a desired value or rangeof values that the advertiser or sponsor prefers. Further, note that, insome embodiments, each demographic item pair may have additionalinformation associated with it such as a perceived importance of thedemographic item pair to the advertiser or sponsor. Thus, suchadditional information may be in the form of a normalized scalar valuewherein a value of one indicates that the demographic item pair is ofhighest importance whereas a value of zero indicates that thedemographic item is substantially irrelevant to the advertiser orsponsor. Accordingly, regardless of the particular embodiment of thedemographic profiles, the users' demographic profiles are used to match(i.e., select) one or more corresponding advertising presentations witha particular target group of users that, presumably, are likely topurchase the product and/or service portrayed in such advertisingpresentations. Thus, since such advertising presentations may beprovided to only users who are likely to be subsequent customers,advertisers and/or sponsors may provide to these users specificallytargeted advertising having relatively expensive promotionals such asproduct or service discounts, free samples, or a trial usage.

Accordingly, to perform the selecting or matching of users with suchdemographic profiles, for each user, the user profiles stored in theuser database 28 are compared with the demographic profiles by theadvertising selection engine 618. Note that there are numeroustechniques for performing such a comparison for selecting a group ofusers. In particular, a precise match may be required between eachdemographic item pair and a corresponding user information item pair sothat the second component of the user information item pair is (within)a desired range as specified in the corresponding demographic item pair.Alternatively, various weighting statistical techniques may be used fordetermining a “similarity” measurement when not all demographic pairsare required to precisely match a demographic profile. In oneembodiment, the similarity measurement may be provided by a statisticalanalysis module that determines the users that most closely match thecorresponding demographic profile for an advertising presentation. Thus,in order for a user to be selected, the similarity measurement betweenthe user's profile and a corresponding demographic profile may berequired to be above a predetermined threshold. Additionally, note thatthe advertising selection engine 618 may perform the matching of userswith advertising presentations as a background or non-real time processso that, for example, for each user profile in the user database 28,there is a related table identifying the advertising presentations thatare candidates for presentation to the corresponding user when, forinstance, this user communicates with the game/advertisement web site308.

Moreover, it is important to note that at least in one embodiment of thepresent invention, the advertising selection engine 618 may, for aparticular demographic profile, periodically re-evaluate user profilesin the user database 28 for reselecting the group of users to which anadvertising presentation is to be presented. Thus, users previouslyselected may be requalified or disqualified and users previouslydisqualified may be now qualified for selection due to, for example, anenhanced user profile.

Accordingly, the present invention may commence or cease transmitting acategory of advertising to a user whose user profile is enhanced withadditional information. For example, if a user indicates that he/she iscurrently considering the purchase of a new car, then advertising forpurchasing a car may be transmitted to the user. Alternatively, once thepresent invention is notified that, for example, a car has beenpurchased or that no further car advertising is are desired, then afurther enhancement of the user's profile may be performed so that nofurther advertising from the category of car advertising is transmittedto the user.

Note that the present invention provides for flexibly creating, deletingand modifying categories of advertisements by providing techniques forlinking demographic item pairs that are similarly related to a categoryrecord or object. Thus, at least the following advertising categoriesmay be provided by the present invention: sports categories (e.g.,baseball, soccer, hockey, etc.), food related categories (e.g.,restaurants, grocery stores, food items), exercise related advertising(e.g., bicycles, in-line skates, skiing), insurance related advertising(e.g., auto insurance, life insurance), political related advertising(e.g., for or against a particular political candidate), andgeographical related advertising (e.g., for users living in a particulararea such as the Denver metropolitan area). Thus, the advertisingselection engine 618 supplies the selected advertising presentations tothe HTML display engine 622 for translating this data so that it maysubsequently be included in an HTML output to the user by the commongateway interface 348.

More precisely, the selected advertisement data is joined in the HTMLdisplay engine 622 (at least in one operation of the present invention)with a token 628 representing, for example, a gaming card (for a currentuser game) that has been issued by the token generator (module) 38, thisgenerator being an enhanced version of the card generator module 38 ofFIG. 3. The generated token is supplied initially to the game playengine 632 for processing user gaming requests according to the rules ofthe game being played. That is, the game play engine 632 determines, foreach available game: (a) how each token may be “played”; (b) whoreceives the token, for example, the user or the house playing module42; and (c) the result of playing the token. Note that in oneembodiment, the token generator 38 generates tokens on request by, forexample, the house playing module 42 and/or the player optionsevaluators 34, wherein the tokens generated are appropriate to the gamebeing played. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the token generator38 may generate random tokens and the game play engine 632 transformsthe tokens into appropriate randomized values for the games offered, asone skilled in the art will appreciate. Furthermore, other embodimentsfor supplying randomized tokens to a plurality of different games arewithin the scope of the present invention. Additionally, the game playengine 632 contacts the player database 28 to maintain the status of theuser in relation to the particular game being played as well as theuser's relationship to all of the other users (if, for example, the useris involved in a tournament offered at the game/advertisement web site308). Note that, as one skilled in the art will appreciate, in oneembodiment of the game play engine 632, its internal modules provide asimilar architecture and functionality to the correspondingly labeledmodules of FIG. 3, albeit additionally, for games other than blackjack(e.g., “head-to-head” poker, craps, roulette, and pai gow).

The common gateway interface or CGI scripts 348 transfer data betweenthe HTML, display, engine 622 and the World Wide Web server 340 which,as one skilled in the art will understand, may be a plurality of highlevel executable programs as discussed in the description of CG1 scripts348 for FIG. 3. The World Wide Web server 340, in turn, transfers thedata to the Internet WA/IP stack 332 that interfaces with the Internet324 for transferring the data to an intended Internet client node 318having an appropriate World Wide Web browser 640.

The present embodiment maintains information on the status of gamesbeing played and user responses to advertising in the user database 28.Moreover, additional advertiser specific information (e.g., desireddemographic profiles, advertisements, promotionals, and informationrelated to user responses) is provided in the advertiser database 612.Accordingly, as discussed above, the demographic profiles in theadvertiser database 612 may include schemes or templates having fieldsfor designating one or more of the attributes (8.1) through (8.11).Moreover, the databases 28 and 612 may maintain records of various typesof pertinent statistics such as: (a) the advertising presentationspresented to each user; (b) the time, date and number of presentationsof a particular advertising presentation; and (c) the detected userresponses to the advertising. Thus, this information may provideadvertisers or sponsors with enhanced feedback as to the efficacy oftheir products, services and presentations thereof. Thus, by maintainingdata regarding information on: (i) each game played, (ii) the users and(iii) the advertisers, the host computer 10 may maintain accuraterecords of every type of pertinent statistics such as: alladvertisements seen by all users so that the time, date and number ofviews are available to the advertiser to confirm and verify, e.g., (9.1)through (9.3) following, and additionally, an advertiser may be able toquery the user and advertiser databases 28 and 612 to obtain suchfeedback as:

-   (9.1) who has seen a particular advertisement;-   (9.2) when it was seen;-   (9.3) the number of times the advertisement was accessed:    -   (a) by any particular user;    -   (b) by all users; and-   (9.4) the number of favorable and/or unfavorable responses.

Referring now to FIG. 7, a diagram is presented providing one embodimentof the access routes or paths users navigate in accessing the featuresof the game/advertisement web site 308. In particular, upon initiatingInternet contact with the game/advertisement web site 308, a user isfirst presented with the opening page 700 identifying the web site 308.Subsequently, the user can access the benefits and registration pages704 for viewing general information related to web site 308 and also forregistering at the web site (as is discussed in further detail below).Alternatively, the user may access one or more “Lobby” pages 708 to viewthe gaming and information exchange capabilities as, for example,provided by advertisers. Assuming the user is registered at thegame/advertisement web site 308, the user may proceed from the LOBBY 708to the game page 710, wherein a game 726 or game rules 730 can beselected for playing, via the introduction to game pages 728.Alternatively, the user may instead access one or more index pages 714having, for example, listings of organizations to which the user may beallowed to access depending on the affiliations of the user (e.g., amember of a particular membership discount store chain). Additionally,from the index page(s) 714 substantially any user may access anadvertisement or promotional provided by an advertiser on an advertiserpage(s) 722. However, it is an aspect of the present invention thatinformation related to certain promotionals provided by advertisers orsponsors are restricted. That is, such promotionals may be onlypresented to users having a demographic profile that has been determinedby the present invention to be sufficiently compatible with a desireduser profile for the advertiser or sponsor to warrant providing such apromotional. Thus, the present invention provides access to certainadvertiser promotionals only to “qualified” users who are, for example,considered likely subsequent purchasers of the advertiser's productsand/or services. Additionally, such promotionals may also be presentedto users who express an interest in a particular product or serviceadvertised. For example, users who (a) request additional orsupplemental information related to an advertised item, or (b) provide afavorable response to such advertising (by, for instance, indicating apreference for an advertised item), or (c) respond to a questionnairerelated to personal information or marketing survey information may alsobe provided with information regarding promotionals. Thus, advertisersor sponsors may offer relatively substantial or expensive promotionalsvia the present invention to such users as well.

Moreover, the present invention may also utilize such demographicprofiles to prohibit a user not sufficiently matching such a demographicprofile from gaining access to a corresponding promotional. Accordingly,in one embodiment of the present invention, when the user accesses anadvertiser page 722, the user's profile (in the user database 28) iscompared with the demographic profiles in the advertiser data base 612for determining any promotionals that can be presented to the user.

Moreover, from the index page 714 the user may be provided with theability to link into various web sites or web site pages. That is, theuser may be provided with the ability to link into another web site orweb page at any time a link is made available (typically a hypertextlink). Additionally, note that similar links may be accessible by userswhile playing a game 726. However, these links may generally hyperlinkthe user to an advertiser page 722 within the game/advertisement website 308 so that the user may be exposed to further information and/orpresented with promotional options for an advertised item. For instance,certain advertising hyperlinks may be integrated into the presentationof plays of a game 726. Accordingly, since an aspect of the presentinvention is to repeatedly integrate different advertising presentations(and any related hyperlinks) into the play of a game 726, a user mayrepeatedly be enticed to seek out additional information about differentproducts or services by activating the related hyperlinks. Moreover, itis also an aspect of the present invention that when such hyperlinksprovide the user with access to a different web site, that at least aportion of the display of the user's Internet client node 318 maintainsa graphical format associated with the game/advertisement web site 308,and that the user may leave and return to the web site 308 without theuser being aware of accessing another web site. Moreover, by monitoringuser input related to an advertising presentation, the present inventionis able to provide feedback to an advertiser as to, for example, thenumber of times the advertising presentation is accessed by users forsuch additional information about products or services.

Also note that some advertisements (presented via advertiser pages 722or as part of a game play presentation) may be interactive with the userwherein the user may perform a transaction such as making a reservation(e.g., an airline or hotel reservation). Further, a user may be giventhe opportunity to provide positive and negative opinions or responseson, for example, various advertisements, promotionals and other relatedmatters by expressing such responses upon accessing advertisementrelated information. Thus, it is an aspect of the present invention tobe able to conduct “test marketing” in that statistically representativegroups of users may be selected for determining:

-   (10.1) the efficacy or appeal of one advertisement in comparison to    another advertisement for a particular advertised item;-   (10.2) the profile of the users that are responsive to a particular    advertising presentation; and/or-   (10.3) whether a particular group of users, for example, having    similar user profiles favorably respond to a particular advertising    presentation. For example, the present invention may determine such    a response: (a) by detecting an activation of a hyperlink, (b) by    detecting a response to questions presented, and/or (c) by    determining the length of time the advertising presentation is    displayed or visible.

Accordingly, input response data may be transmitted to thegame/advertisement web site 308 and retained for subsequent statisticalevaluation. Thus, resulting aggregate statistics can be made availableto, for example, advertisers or sponsors, thereby preserving the privacyof the users. In particular, statistics may be made available for:

-   (11.1) providing information about, for example, the efficacy of    certain advertising presentations (e.g., the number of positive    responses to such presentations and/or the number of advertised    items sold directly through the advertisements at the    game/advertisement web site 308);-   (11.2) providing information related to the number and profile of    users accessing certain advertising presentations;-   (11.3) determining measurements related to the number of different    (groups of) users to which an advertising presentation has been    presented;-   (11.4) determining the total number of presentations of a particular    advertisement;-   (11.5) determining the cost of advertising presentations to the    advertisers and billing the advertisers for such costs according to,    for example, at least one of: (a) the number of users to which an    advertisement is presented, (b) the number of promotionals requested    or (c) the number of network user communications (i.e., hits) with    the web site 308;-   (11.6) determining if an advertising presentation should be    discontinued because the advertiser's cost limits have been reached,    such limits being, for example, related to a total number of    presentations of an advertising presentation. Note that, in one    embodiment, it is an aspect of the present invention to charge an    advertiser for each presentation to a user; or-   (11.7) determining which of an advertising presentation and a    different second advertising presentation (from the same advertiser)    is most effective when both are provided to various selected (groups    of) users, so that the advertiser or sponsor may then have a basis    for choosing the most appropriate of the two advertising    presentations in future advertising.

Additionally, it is an aspect of the present invention that it may alsomaintain statistics (and/or related information) for:

-   (12.1) providing “real time” game rankings of users (players)    involved in a gaming tournament provided by the game/advertisement    web site 308. Note that such rankings may be provided to a user so    that he/she may know his/her standing and the number of players    remaining in the tournament; and-   (12.2) providing a “style of personality” of the game playing users    so that, for example, a risk tolerance of such users may be    estimated and used to determine if a particular user might be    interested in a particular product or service. Thus, such “style of    personality” statistics for a user may be stored in the user's    profile. For example, the information captured here may include:    average size of wager, average size of wager in comparison to the    total amount that could be wagered, length of time playing in a    single session, the ratio of the number of wagers on high risk'plays    presented, and the skill of the player.

Accordingly, the following aspects of the present invention arenoteworthy:

-   (13.1) the user may be provided with free access or reduced cost    access to other areas of the Internet 324 upon viewing the    presentations of certain organizations and/or advertisers. Note that    the ability to reduce the cost of accessing the Internet may act as    a vehicle for attracting various users;-   (13.2) the index page 714 gives a user the opportunity to access a    particular organization (e.g., organizations 718) that the user may    belong to or any particular advertiser (e.g., advertisers 722)    without going through any games although the user may be required to    go through the “LOBBY” page(s) 708 and thereby be exposed to    advertising and/or the opportunity to join a game;-   (13.3) a user may also be able to go from an initial organization    page 718 to an introductory game page 728 (e.g., for a game 726)    but, unless authorized, may not be provided with further access to    the organization's web pages or the game;-   (13.4) while playing a game 726, the user has the ability to access    further information related to an advertisement or promotional being    presented;-   (13.5) during the playing of a game 726 (e.g., blackjack), the user    may be allowed to review and/or stepwise replay a previous portion    of a game 726 during a current gaming session;-   (13.6) when in a particular organization page 718, the user may be    required to return to the index page 714 before linking into an    advertiser 722 unless a direct link has been provided for some    reason on the particular organization web page. Moreover, the user    may access the game page 710 from the index page 714 and vice versa;-   (13.7) a user may either go directly into playing a particular game    726 (as authorized) or to a rules section 730 for reviewing the    rules for the corresponding game 726. Note that a user may always    access the rules section 730 during the corresponding game 726;-   (13.8) there is a help feature for providing information such as:    -   a) how to do some particular action, or the reason for some        action or the reason an action is blocked. For example, the        reason for an inability to access a certain web page, the reason        for an inability to make a particular game play, such as a bet,        stand or hit in the game of blackjack and/or the reason for a        particular result of a certain bet, hit, stand or other user        play in a game such as blackjack;    -   b) for contacting a gaming referee for resolving gaming        conflicts. Such a referee will be available to resolve any        dispute. Note that the user can notify the management operating        the present invention of a problem via, for example,        notification forms displayed when a notification button is        activated.

Referring now to an alternative embodiment of the present inventionpresented in FIG. 8, wherein the game/advertisement web site 308coordinates with a third party Internet access service provider 810 (orinteractive cable television provider) for providing Internet 324 (cabletelevision) access to users on a reduced cost or free basis once a userhas registered with the web server 340 (cable television provider). Thatis, the game/advertisement web site 308 contacts the user's Internetservice provider 810 and arranges to subsidize the user's Internetservice charges in return for the gaming advertisement web site 308being able to repeatedly download to the user's Internet client node 318(or alternatively, interactive cable television node), unrequestedinformation such as advertising for presentation to the user.

Accordingly, a prospective user of the present invention can sign up orregister with the game/advertisement web site 308 for reduced Internetservice fees by dialing into an Internet service provider 810 withnormal serial dialing and after gaining Internet access, subsequentlylog on to the web site 308 as a user identified by the generic useridentifier “NEW.” Each user identified by “NEW” is forced into aconnection with an enrollment or registration program so he/she canprovide information requested by the present invention that cansubsequently be used in determining which advertising to present to thisuser according to, for example, advertiser preferences. Thus, whenregistration is completed, the present embodiment of the inventiondownloads, for example, an ad viewer program 812 and a communicationsdaemon (e.g., ad receiver daemon 806) to the user's Internet client node318, wherein this daemon allows the game/advertisement web site 308 todownload to the user's Internet client node 318 unrequested informationsuch as advertising repeatedly. Accordingly, assuming the daemon 806 isinstalled, the user may access not only the gaming and advertisementservices of the web site 308, but also access substantially the entireInternet through the web site 308 at a reduced cost. Thus, whenever theend user processor 318 connects with the Internet service provider 810,the game/advertisement web site 308 is alerted by the Internet serviceprovider 810 and the DISPLAY ENGINE 622 starts up the downloaded daemon806 via Internet communications with the user's Internet client node318. Subsequently, the DISPLAY ENGINE 622 periodically sends selectedadvertising to the daemon 806. Accordingly, the daemon 806 utilizes thead viewer program 812 to coordinate the display of the advertisingpresentation.

Note that various alternative embodiments related to the architectureand functionality of FIG. 8 are also within the scope of the presentinvention. For example, instead of communicating with a plurality ofthird-party Internet service providers 806 for determining when usersregistered with the present invention are accessing the Internet viasubsidized Internet connections, the game/advertisement web site 308 mayinclude or be related to a dedicated Internet service provider 806 sothat when a user registers with the present invention, the user isprovided with a new Internet access code for the dedicated Internetservice provider 806 and the user's Internet access fees may besubsidized.

However, regardless of how the present invention subsidizes Internetaccess, the game/advertisement controller 604 is notified whenever eachsubsidized user connects to the Internet or disconnects from theInternet. Additionally, certain reliability features are included in thedaemon 806 and ad view program 812 for assuring that advertising isindeed presented to the user. For example, there may be periodictransmissions from each subsidized user's Internet client node 318 tothe web site 308 verifying that both the daemon 806 and the ad viewprogram 812 are active. Note that whenever any advertising is receivedat the user's Internet client node 318, the daemon 806 transfers theadvertising to the ad viewer program 812 which, in turn, converts thetransmitted information to a displayable format and forces the displayof the user's Internet client node 318 to present the advertisingunobscured to the user.

An additional and/or alternative description of the embodiment of thepresent invention shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B is as follows: users may usethe present invention to access the INTERNET 324 on a reduced cost orfree basis, by using whatever TCP/IP SLIP/PPP package they desire andregistering with the web server 308. That is, a user can sign up orregister by dialing into a terminal server with normal serial dialingand log on as a user identified by the identifier “NEW.” User “NEW” isthen forced into a connection to an enrollment or registration programso he/she can provide information requested by the present invention.When enrollment is completed, the present invention allows the user todownload a communications daemon (e.g., ad receiver daemon 806) to theuser's Internet client node 318. The user may then install the daemon ontheir machine (Internet client node 318) and dial-up with their favoriteTCP/IP package.

However, upon accessing the host 308, the user accesses basicfunctionality of the DISPLAY ENGINE 622 that starts up the downloadeddaemon 806. The network host 308 periodically queries each active porton the terminal servers (e.g., Internet client node 318) to get the IPaddresses and then send a short message to the daemon 806 which islistening in on a specific port. The DISPLAY ENGINE 622 may also disableaccess by an end user machine 318 after a certain number of failures.

Note that the host 308 periodically sends an item to the downloadeddaemon 806 to display. The daemon then displays the message(advertisement) in a window (of the WWW browser 640) on the user'sscreen.

Additionally, note that in certain contexts the DISPLAY ENGINE 622 maytransmit a message to an Internet Service Provider 806 indicating thatno further Internet access will be subsidized due to a predeterminednumber of advertising presentation display failures.

The foregoing discussion of the invention has been presented forpurposes of illustration and description. Further, the description isnot intended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein.Consequently, variation and modification commiserate with the aboveteachings, within the skill and knowledge of the relevant art, arewithin the scope of the present invention. The embodiment describedhereinabove is further intended to explain the best mode presently knownof practicing the invention and to enable others skilled in the art toutilize the invention as such, or in other embodiments, and with thevarious modifications required by their particular application or usesof the invention.

1. A method of providing game and advertising information via Internettransmissions, comprising: for each user of a plurality of users, eachuser having a corresponding user computer, performing the followingsteps: (A1) receiving, on a corresponding Internet connection by theuser's computer, an Internet communication from the user's computerrequesting access to a game playing website of the Internet, said gameplaying website providing access to information for an interactive game,wherein said communication includes an Internet address identifying thegame playing website, and wherein said interactive game is interactiveon the Internet with the user; (A2) providing a second Internetcommunication, from the game playing website and to the user's computer,said second Internet communication providing game playing websiterelated information including: (i) information obtained from one or moreprevious user interactions with the game playing website is accessed bythe game playing website for obtaining data for the second Internetcommunication; and (ii) combined data having advertising related dataand data identifying the interactive game, combined therein, thecombined data for displaying at the user's computer a combinedpresentation of information for accessing the interactive game and anadvertising presentation corresponding to the advertising related data,wherein the advertising presentation has predetermined Internet linkdata associated therewith such that the link data is activated by a userinput to the advertising presentation resulting in a correspondingInternet transmission of data indicative of said user input beingtransmitted to a predetermined Internet presentation; and (A3)subsequently receiving a third Internet communication corresponding to auser input to the user's computer for playing the interactive game; (A4)subsequently transmitting a fourth Internet communication for the user'scomputer, wherein as a consequence of the fourth Internet communication,additional advertising related data for presenting unrequestedadvertising of one or more of a purchasable product or a purchasableservice for one of a plurality of advertisers is displayed at the user'scomputer together with information related to the interactive game,wherein the additional advertising related data is selected according toinformation previously received from the user by the game playingwebsite.
 2. The method of claim 1, further including receiving accessinformation indicative of the link data being activated by the user,wherein the access information is used in deriving advertisingeffectiveness information which is subsequently made available to theone advertiser.
 3. A method of providing game and advertisinginformation via Internet transmissions, comprising: receiving, at anInternet service provider, a request for access to the Internet by eachof a plurality of users' computers; providing, by the Internet serviceprovider, a corresponding Internet connection for each of the users'computers; for each user of at least first and second of the users,performing the following steps: (A1) receiving, on the correspondingInternet connection by the user's computer, an Internet communicationfrom the user's computer requesting access to a game playing website ofthe Internet, said game playing website providing access to informationfor an interactive game, wherein said communication includes an Internetaddress identifying the game playing website, and wherein saidinteractive game is interactive on the Internet with the user; (A2)providing a second Internet communication, from the game playing websiteand to the user's computer, said second Internet communication providinginformation for said interactive game, wherein information indicative ofone or more previous user interactions with the game playing website isaccessed by the game playing website for obtaining data for the secondInternet communication, and wherein advertising related data; whereinthe second Internet communication includes combined data havingadvertising related data and data identifying the interactive game,combined therein, the combined data for displaying at the user'scomputer a combined presentation of information for accessing theinteractive game and an advertising presentation corresponding to theadvertising related data, wherein the advertising presentation haspredetermined Internet link data associated therewith such that the linkdata is activated by a user input to the advertising presentationresulting in a corresponding Internet transmission of data indicative ofsaid user input being transmitted to a predetermined Internetpresentation; and (A3) subsequently receiving a third Internetcommunication corresponding to a user input to the user's computer forplaying the interactive game; (A4) subsequently transmitting a fourthInternet communication for the user's computer, wherein as a consequenceof the fourth Internet communication, additional advertising relateddata for presenting unrequested advertising of one or more of apurchasable product or a purchasable service for one of a plurality ofadvertisers is displayed at the user's computer together withinformation related to the interactive game, wherein the additionaladvertising related data is selected according to information previouslyreceived from the user by the game playing website.